The next massive chapter in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is coming to massive screens very soon, but a whole lot has happened between the last universe-shaking saga and this one. Marvel has been pumping out more content than ever before, so to make sure that everyone is caught up on what they need to know going into this movie, today, we’re going over five essential MCU storylines that everyone needs to know going in. So, without further ado, let’s dive right into five of the most important things to remember for Avengers: Doomsday.
The multiverse has become an essential part of the MCU as a whole, and it wouldn’t exist without Loki. Specifically, the variant who escaped from capture in 2012, created by the time-travel shenanigans that helped defeat Thanos in Avengers: Endgame. This Loki would then be forcibly recruited into the Time Variance Authority and come into contact with He Who Remains. He was the final variant of Kang the Conqueror, who wiped out every diverging timeline to ensure that his variants could not destroy everything in a multiversal war.
At the end of Loki season two, the titular god restored the multiverse by becoming its new overseer, ensuring that every timeline could prosper without Kang’s interference by watching from the end of time. This, of course, leads to the numerous universes about to collide in Doomsday and the Incursions, where universes have begun to bleed into each other. Given that Loki is the new God of the Multiverse and Thor is a pivotal character in Doomsday, it’s highly likely that the two will interact on some level, potentially with Loki even tasking Thor with stopping Doom from destroying everything.
The X-Men as we know them have yet to form in the main MCU timeline, but we know for a fact that they exist in other worlds. That was shown at the end of The Marvels, which saw Captain Marvel, Miss Marvel, and Monica Rambeau end up in a rupture between realities, which resembled an Incursion. Monica managed to shut the rift with a massive blast of energy, but it left her stranded in the other universe in question, where she awoke to Beast of the X-Men looking over her.
The X-Men are set to be a massive and important part of Doomsday, with a fight between them and the Avengers seeming inevitable. Of course, with Monica in their reality, she’s likely to be the bridge that connects the two groups when they are set against each other, and help them realize that they all share a single goal: stopping Doom. Bringing down Doctor Doom is going to take every group of heroes there is, and Monica is the one person who has worked with both teams, meaning that she can guide them in teamwork in a way that nobody else can. Let’s also not forget that she proved Incursions can be stopped with enough energy, which is likely to become very relevant.
Deadpool and Wolverine did a whole lot more than connect Wade Wilson and the incredible Wolverine, as it also established that each world revolved around a character who acted as an Anchor Being. Once this person died, the entire universe began to decay, but, importantly, the film also established that one or more other people can become a universe’s new Anchor Being, saving it from collapse. This is definitely going to be relevant to Doom’s plan. After all, it’s incredibly likely that either Iron Man or Steve Rogers was the MCU’s Anchor Being, but both have long since been lost.
Doom is played by Robert Downey Jr., and Steve is set to make a return, but it’s quite possible he won’t be returning as a hero. If either one of the heroes is meant to be an Anchor Being, then it’s possible Doom’s ultimate goal is to usurp that position and make himself the Anchor Being for every reality, establishing himself as the ultimate ruler of everything. Of course, if the returning Cap is evil, then he could attempt to supplant him as the MCU’s new Anchor Being to control their reality. However it shakes out, the concept of Anchor Beings is sure to become relevant to this story in some capacity.
As shown in the Thunderbolts* post-credit scene, there are now two teams of Avengers operating. Yelena leads the New Avengers, which were touted as the next generation’s heroes after they saved New York City from the Void, while Sam Wilson, the new Captain America, has founded his own Avengers team to reclaim the title from them. This has effectively split the superhero community in half, with a line drawn between who stands with Yelena and who follows Cap. Based on the anger present in the scene, they also seem antagonistic towards each other.
Just like when Thanos ripped his way through Earth’s heroes, the MCU’s superheroes are at each other’s throats when they should be standing side by side. Given the rivalry between both teams as they seek to establish themselves as the true Avengers, it’s possible that the New Avengers attempt to work with the Fantastic Four on their own, since they spotted them first. Without every hero working together, there’s absolutely no chance of stopping Doom, and as of right now, they definitely aren’t on the same side.
Of course, the most important storyline to remember is the one that directly kicks off this bombastic crossover. The post-credits scene in Fantastic Four: First Steps revealed that Doctor Doom kidnapped the young Franklin Richards, which leads to the Fantastic Four traversing the multiverse to get him back. The reason Doom kidnapped the boy is that he commands more power than anyone else in reality, able to literally rewrite anything he wants with a thought. Galactus traveled to the Fantastic Four’s Earth in the first place because he sensed Franklin’s incredible might.
Everything in Doomsday is going to revolve around Doom’s unstoppable might, and it’s likely that this power comes from Franklin. If Doom has found a way to either control or usurp Franklin’s powers, then he would become the strongest person in the MCU’s history, without a doubt. Franklin can make the Infinity Stones look like toys if he had full mastery of his abilities, and it’s all but assured that this will be the driving force behind Doom’s campaign of control. It’s a race to rescue Franklin before Doom completes his plan.
Which MCU storyline do you expect will be pivotal for Doomsday‘s plot? Let us know your top picks in the ComicBook forum and the comments below!
